


Hand Delivered

by ChokolatteJedi



Series: x6325 [11]
Category: Chuck (TV), White Collar (TV 2009)
Genre: F/M, M/M, Matchmaking, Neal Caffrey & Bryce Larkin Are Twins, POV Multiple, Pining, Secret Messages, Sneaky Neal Caffrey, Spies & Secret Agents, Time Skips, Twins
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-03-01
Updated: 2012-03-01
Packaged: 2021-03-15 19:47:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,755
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28943922
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChokolatteJedi/pseuds/ChokolatteJedi
Summary: Neal is sick of Bryce pining for Chuck. With Sara's help, he intends to do something about it.
Relationships: Chuck Bartowski/Bryce Larkin, Neal Caffrey/Sara Ellis
Series: x6325 [11]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2119584
Kudos: 21





	Hand Delivered

**Author's Note:**

> No phone calls in this one -- Neal has slightly different methods.

"Sara, you have contacts in Southern California, right?" Neal asked absently, his fingers tracing a pattern on her lower back.

"I have contacts everywhere," she replied with a chuckle.

"Could you pass on a package for me? It needs to be hand-delivered the final step: I don't trust some of the people there."

"Is it something illegal?" Sara asked bluntly, turning her head to stare at him.

"Maybe?" Neal said, continuing quickly before she could pick at that unhelpful answer. "Some states consider filming a person without their permission to be illegal, but in the grand scheme of things, I think you'd agree that this is an acceptable use."

"I'll need a little more information than that," Sara informed him. It wasn't a 'no', though, which was something.

"You remember I mentioned my brother?" When Sara nodded, he continued. "He's been pining after his old friend for years, but refuses to make the first move. I've met the guy, and I know that he returns Bryce's feelings, but they're both being idiots about it."

"So you filmed Bryce saying something about the guy, something that would tell him how he felt…" Sara filled in the blanks.

"And I want to send it to him," Neal agreed. "But they have mutual friends out there, and I don't want one of the others to get their hands on the file and raz him about it. And unlike the FBI or Mozzie, I trust _you_ not to watch it either, until you've met him. Then I'll gladly share all the embarrassing dirt I've got."

"Alright, sounds like it's for a noble cause," Sara agreed. "I'm in."

"Wonderful!" Neal smiled brightly and leaned in, placing a gentle kiss on her forehead. "I can't wait for you to meet him."

"You keep building him up like this, he's going to have a lot to live up to when that day comes," Sara pointed out.

"I have every confidence that he'll exceed your expectations," Neal promised.

Sara laughed. "Okay, now I'm even more intrigued. Actually, you know what? I'm supposed to swing by the San Francisco office next month. I could see if they can move it to next week and get a layover in LA."

"Really?" Neal asked hopefully. "You'd do that for me?"

"Well if I can't meet your brother yet, at least I can meet his future boyfriend, right?" she teased.

Neal laughed. "He won't know what hit him! If he's anything like when I first met him, the sight of you would short-circuit his brain!"

oOo

"You have a _smoking_ hot visitor," Sara heard the man in the green shirt announce. He had led her to the back office when she asked for Chuck Carmichael, but then left her a few feet away while he stuck his head in the door.

Sara knew that this employee wasn't the one Neal had mentioned, but his reaction was as gratifyingly tongue-tied as she had been promised.

"Thanks Morgan, send her in," she heard from the one who had to be Bryce's Chuck.

When her guide — Morgan — turned, he executed an elaborate bow. "Right this way, milady," he said.

"Thank you," Sara walked past him and then gently shut the door in his face. Turning, she studied Chuck. He was tall — taller than Neal and maybe even Peter — with wavy brown hair. His suit and tie wasn't as well fitted as Neal's, but she could see the appeal. He seemed to have grown up more than Neal expected, however: though his gaze was appreciative, he managed to find his voice quickly.

"How can I help you, Miss?"

"Sara Ellis, Sterling Bosch," she quickly introduced herself. "I have a hand-delivery for you from New York." She fished the small manila envelope out of her purse. "I was told to advise you to watch that in private. If you want, I can also carry a return message back to Neal."

Chuck looked intrigued, but not as surprised as Sara would expect, with such a cryptic setup. He accepted the package warily and opened it, dumping the small flash drive onto his hand.

"I'll leave you to it," Sara said, opening the door rapidly. Her guess was accurate, as Morgan was standing uncomfortably close, clearly trying to eavesdrop. "Excuse me."

He quickly backed up a few paces, and Sara closed the door behind herself before taking up a guarding position. Neal's comment about others listening in was making a lot more sense, and Sara would do her best to protect Bryce's privacy — and Chuck's.

A few minutes later, she heard Chuck's voice all the way through the door. "SONUVABITCH!"

Morgan jerked, and Sara smirked at his reaction — clearly Neal was right about Chuck's feelings for Bryce. Suddenly, the door was yanked open. Chuck had a pair of sunglasses on his head, and he appeared emotional as hell, but he calmed himself enough to smile politely at Sara.

"Thank you for passing on the message, Sara. Please tell Neal that I _was_ unaware of the situation, but that I'll be there — to both events. Trained assassins couldn't keep me away."

"Oh, I'm going to like getting to know you," she teased, ignoring his odd phrasing. Neal could probably parse it for her later. Pulling a card out of her purse, Sara handed it to him. "If you need the boys for any reason, call me. I can pass the word."

Chuck accepted the card with another taut smile. "Thanks, Sara. I'll see you again soon."

Deciding to give his friend a shock, Sara quickly stood on her tiptoes and gave him a friendly peck on the cheek. Then, Sara strode out of the Buy More to where her cab was still waiting. She couldn't wait to meet Bryce in a few weeks and finally figure out what that video message had been about.

oOo

Chuck hadn't flashed on Sara Ellis, but he didn't want to take any chances; in his experience, mysterious electronic messages were never a good thing. He pulled a pair of sunglasses out of his drawer and put them on, just in case, before booting up the drive.

It contained two video files, labeled "watch first" and "watch second." Plushing play on the first one, Chuck saw a gorgeous skyline, before the camera swung around, past a half-finished painting, to show Bryce, lounging with a laptop on a brown leather couch. Chuck quickly yanked the glasses up.

Bryce, clearly unaware he was being filmed, was staring intently at his laptop. The voice, when it spoke, sounded just like him, but Bryce's mouth was still closed. It took Chuck a bare second to realize that this must be his brother, Neal. Chuck had met him once at Stanford.

_"So, is that work or pleasure?" Neal asked._

_Bryce's gaze instantly became hooded. "None of your business."_

_"Oh, stalking Chuck again, got it," Neal laughed. "Forget I asked."_

Chuck gasped.

_"I am not stalking Chuck!" Bryce protested._

_"Look me in the eye right now and tell me you don't have the Buy More surveillance feeds up on your computer." Neal taunted._

Chuck's gaze flipped to the camera in the corner of his office, then back down to the screen. Bryce was scowling.

_"Ugh," Neal moaned. "I can't take much more of this. I don't care if you ruined his life once; he's already said he's forgiven you. Just tell him that you love him already and stop moping."_

Chuck's jaw dropped.

_"I won't tell him," Bryce growled. "If he wants me, he'll tell me. I'm not going to ruin his life again by hitting on him."_

_"Does he even know you're alive, this time?" Neal asked. The view shifted, half on Bryce while half was back on the painting. A paintbrush came into view as Neal clearly went back to working on it._

_"He knows," Bryce said mulishly. "It's in my files, which are in his head."_

_"Well then, I wash my hands of you," Neal declared._

The feed cut, leaving Chuck staring at his screen. Before he could fully release the anger rising in him, though, he needed to watch the second video. Opening it, he quickly realized that Neal was wearing the same camera, this time sitting on a bed facing a mirror. From the angle, Bryce realized that the camera was probably mounted in the pen that was slid onto the strap of his white tank. He was wearing comfy-looking maroon sweats and was barefoot. Chuck absently picked out the differences in their hairstyles — Neal's was shorter and parted on the side instead of the middle, with his bangs gelled back — before Neal spoke to him.

_"Chuck, I'm out of ideas. He won't make a move and it's driving me crazy. If I was you, I'd want to know, so here it is. We're in New York: my apartment is at 87 Riverside Drive, Manhattan. But, I have a proposition. I've got a commutation hearing coming up on the twenty-eighth." He lifted his pant leg slightly, showing a tracking anklet blinking green. "Assuming I succeed, we're having a celebratory party. And if I fail, it'll be a commiserating party."_

_"Either way, Bryce'll be there after testifying at my hearing that afternoon. You're welcome to come to that too, but I'd recommend a disguise. Show up at the Burke's house for my party: 7pm, 4232 DeKalb Avenue, Brooklyn. Come confront him in front of a bunch of people so he can't run away, and so that I can watch you smack some sense into him. I've earned that after what I've put up with for the last few years."_

_"Oh, and no one knows we're twins. We're surprising them in the courtroom, if you'd like to see that part. But I meant what I said about the disguise. I'd rather not interrupt my hearing with him trying to escape you or something." Neal worried his lip for a moment._

_"I think that's all. God, I hope you knew he was alive," Neal muttered as an afterthought. Then he smiled brightly. "Either way, I'd love to see you again!"_

As the second video ended, Chuck grabbed the package. His name and the Buy More address were written in neatly, but the return address was just a name — Neal Caffrey. As soon as he saw it, Bryce flashed, seeing the files appended to Bryce's, the forgeries Neal had done for the CIA, and his entire FBI file, including annotations from a name he knew was one of Bryce's aliases — Brian Anderson.

"SONUVABITCH!" Chuck swore.


End file.
